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Wednesday's Champions League group stage matches were characterized by both a wealth of goals, unpredictable and dramatic episodes, and unexpected or crushing results. After the fourth round, it became clear that alongside the two teams already in the quarterfinals, "Arsenal" and "Barcelona" joined after crushing their opponents, while "Man Utd" suffered an unexpected defeat, and "Juventus" managed to get revenge against "Bayern".
In the previous round, "Juve" had to admit the superiority of "Bayern" in Munich, but this time the match took place in Turin and everything unfolded differently - after playing just over an hour, D.Trezeguet put the hosts ahead, and although shortly after another mistake by C.Abbiati S.Deisler scored with a long-range shot, with five minutes remaining in the match, the same D.Trezeguet snatched victory for the Italian team and allowed them to level the points with their opponents.
In other Group A matches, the "Brugge" team achieved their second victory after falling behind in the first minute against Vienna's "Rapid" after M.Kincl's goal, but later breaking the resistance of the visitors with three goals. The Austrians managed to reduce the difference, but it did not save them from another defeat and ultimately dashed hopes of reaching the next stage.
"Arsenal" also secured their fourth victory out of as many possible on their way to the quarterfinals by confidently defeating Prague's "Sparta" team 3-0 at home. T.Henry scored the first goal for the winners with a firm strike, and R.Van Persie added two more goals. The second match in Group B in Switzerland turned into a drama, where "Thun" managed to equalize the score twice in the game against Amsterdam's "Ajax", but the Dutch club scored two goals in extra time and still celebrated victory.
"Barcelona" club is just one point away from winning Group C, as they simply wiped out Athens' "Panathinaikos" with eleven goals at home. Three goals in the Catalan team were scored by Cameroonian Samuel Eto'o, while M.Van Bommel and L.Messi each scored one goal. A real thriller took place in Bremen - there "Werder" had a three-goal advantage, but "Udinese", as if remembering "Liverpool" heroics in last year's final, equalized the score in six minutes. However, later J.Micoud managed to score a fourth goal and snatch victory for the Germans, reviving their chances to fight for the second place.
One of the most intriguing remains the goalless Group D, in which only eight goals were scored in eight matches. The group leader became the "Villarreal" club, who managed to break the resistance of "Benfica" with a minimal advantage away, however, the surprise of the day was the game of "Lille" - at the Paris "Stade de France" stadium, Lille's team succeeded in defeating the "Man Utd" club and securing their first victory to equal points with the English.
Wednesday's results
Group A
"Brugge" 3 - 2 "Rapid" 1` [0 - 1] Marek Kincl 9` [1 - 1] Javier Portillo 25` [2 - 1] Bosko Balaban 63` [3 - 1] Gert Verheyen 81` [3 - 2] Steffen Hofmann
"Juventus" 2 - 1 "Bayern" 62` [1 - 0] David Trezeguet 66` [1 - 1] Sebastian Deisler 85` [2 - 1] David Trezeguet 90` Zlatan Ibrahimovic ("Juventus") sent off
Group B
"Arsenal" 3 - 0 "Sparta" 23` [1 - 0] Thierry Henry 82` [2 - 0] Robin van Persie 86` [3 - 0] Robin van Persie "Thun" 2 - 4 "Ajax" 27` [0 - 1] Wesley Sneijder 56` [1 - 1] Mauro Lustrinelli 63` [1 - 2] Ioannis Anastasiou 74` [2 - 2] Adriano Pimenta 90+1` [2 - 3] Nigel de Jong 90+3` [2 - 4] Nourdin Boukhari
Group C
"Werder" 4 - 3 "Udinese" 15` [1 - 0] Miroslav Klose 24` [2 - 0] Frank Baumann 51` [3 - 0] Johan Micoud 54` [3 - 1] Antonio Di Natale 57` [3 - 2] Antonio Di Natale 60` [3 - 3] Christian Schulz 67` [4 - 3] Johan Micoud 71` Giampiero Pinzi ("Udinese") sent off
"Barcelona" 5 - 0 "Panathinaikos" 1` [1 - 0] Mark van Bommel 14` [2 - 0] Samuel Eto`o 34` [3 - 0] Lionel Messi 40` [4 - 0] Samuel Eto`o 65` [5 - 0] Samuel Eto`o
Group D
"Benfica" 0 - 1 "Villarreal" 81` [0 - 1] Marcos Senna "Lille" 1 - 0 "Man Utd" 38` [1 - 0] Milenko Acimovic
